In a world where everything is going digital, there's now something very special about receiving mail in the post. And, being the first thing you see, the envelope design is just as important as its contents. From attracting a prospective employer to housing a product, the following envelope designs all have an impressive personal touch...
01. D-Bros
Created by Japanese company D-Bros, these envelopes not only look gorgeous, they'll also ensure you'll never suffer from those painstaking paper cuts. Recipients just need to pull back a cut-out tab to make a tear in the envelope.
The designs include three colours, with three different vehicles providing the rip-roaring effect. The aeroplane, car and steam train are adorably illustrated and perfectly complement the choice of colours for the envelopes.
02. Are We Designer
Are We Designer isn't an agency. It isn't a design office either. No, the people at the German-based firm are "European Design Adverturers". Why? "Because we don’t fit into your run-of-the-mill design agency drawer," they say on their website.
Their self-promotional stationery comes with ‘Sealed with a kiss’ envelope stickers - the kind of small but important detail that makes all the difference in the design industry.
03. ChickChirik
The ChickChirik gift registry project was founded to make gift giving easy. Most materials used for the packaging (such as kraft paper and jute) are recycled, hand-made, natural, soft to the touch and create a feeling of warmth. These basic yet beautiful envelope designs are gorgeous in their simplicity.
04. Symphonesia
Symphonesia is an annual event organized by International Relations Students of Padjadajaran University, consisting of international concerts, international conference, and festival. They make the bold decision to create a new logo each year and this makes the envelope design jump right out at you.
05. Davide Vignes
Developed for Italian designer Davide Vignes' self identity, this envelope contains a six-folded brochure with his personal portfolio and two business cards. The work is based on the visual language developed for the logo and portrays his style perfectly.
06. Hot Popsicle
Graphic designer Rachel Kalagher was one of the three students behind Hot Popsicle - a collaborative branding effort for a fictional graphic design firm. We love every aspect of these business cards' design, from the choice of colours to lolly stick attached. But, in particular, the super-cool envelope designed to look like an ice lolly wrapper. Awesome.
07. Bespoke
German creative agency Are We Designer created this original envelope design to house invitations to an automotive colour show, which presents the current colour collection. The 2012 theme the studio has to follow was 'Wide Awake', which they did perfectly with this beautiful, unfolding design.
08. Sakura Plus
The team at New York-based graphic design agency Studio Network were inspired by traditional Japanese rice packaging when developing this envelope design for Nail & Spa Sakura. The beautifully crafted packaging was created to house the items of Sakura Plus, the salons organic product line.
09. Ivy Hotel
When high-end resort, the Ivy Hotel in San Diego was looking to boost attendance for its meeting and wedding rooms, LA-based creative studio CRU Agency was commissioned to create a sales kit to help sell the facilities. Part of the result was this sophisticated envelope design, with features reflecting the high end branding of the hotel.
10. Archi & Fonctionnalisme
Multidisciplinary design studio Chattermark developed this promotional pack for Sylvie Royer - architect & associates. The unique envelope design not only holds presentation cards, but also unfolds to reveal details about the company's team and proposals for 2013.
11. From Russia with love
Graphic design company Code 501 - Creative Band love to send letters by mail. So the team created this beatiful set of envelopes, featuring a traditional brown kraft paper and a printed pattern on the inside. And to top it off, they designed custom stickers to seal them.
12. Self Promotion
Miriam Sørli Onarheim is a graphic designer from Norway. After gaining a Batchelor of Arts degree in graphic design from Solent University in Southampton, UK, Onarheim developed this beautiful and original envelope design to house her personal showreel.
13. Cinnamon liquers
This cool, retro design comes from Brussels-based graphic designer Ewelina Bocian. Inspired by designs of the '80s, Bocian comments on her design, "All the liqueurs were put in the most simple and old shape of bottles and packed in the paper that look like the polish newspapers back from '80s. All envelopes were then buttoned up with pins."
14. Roots
These charming little envelopes were created by graphic designer Jodie Smith as part of a pack for new allotment members. These seed packets, designed individually to reflect their contents, were all screen printed.
15. Mailer
It's a simple design. But we like it. These self promotional envelopes were created by designer Alex Kwan. Much like a little brown shopping bag, Kwan sent these out to prospective employers, the idea using the image of a newspaper boy, since the envelope carried a newspaper detailing Kwan's skills inside.
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Have you seen any great envelope designs? Tell us all about them in the comments section...
